Skip to content

Posts from the ‘gadget’ Category

Apr 9

The GRID foam roller
5 Comments

My New Travel Friendly Massage Companion

A new item I am traveling to Boston with this year is the GRID foam roller. It is so fantastic that I have been using religiously every day and actually feel the difference from using a regular foam roller. This product offers a “revolutionary advancement over traditional foam rollers.” If it’s revolutionary or not, there are two things I like about the GRID: 1) Solid construction, and 2) Travel friendly.

I assume readers who visit my blog know about benefits of using a foam roller and use one in some frequency. Until I bought the GRID last week, I was an occasional user and was using it because I was told it had benefits. I had been using a foam roller that anyone would find it at a sporting goods store or even super market. I learned how to use it but I was not convinced if it was actually doing anything. It did not particularly stretch sore spots, because the foam was not very solid and had a lot of give in it. I used a tennis ball for places that were really tight. But once I used the GRID, I no longer use a tennis ball. It has Distrodensity™ Foam Zone that is almost as hard as baseball and massages my tight spots very effectively. According to the manufacturer, the material is supposed to last a long time. My regular foam roller was somewhat solid when I bought it, but after a couple of years of occasional use, it is pretty forgiving now.

GRID Foam RollerThe reason I am bringing it to Boston with me is it is very travel friendly. Though it is light-weight, I’ve never traveled with my regular foam roller, because it would not fit in my luggage. In contrast, the GRID is 13-inch long and its diameter is 5-inch (I cannot find exactly how much it weighs). I can easily fit it in my luggage. In addition, it is hollow inside so I can stuff clothes inside and does not take up space in my luggage. Genius! When you travel for races, it is very difficult to bring your everyday items with you. In the past, I traveled without a foam roller and that was fine. But with the GRID, I can travel without a hassle and massage in my hotel room. I totally recommend this gear to anyone who is looking for solutions to alleviate tightness at home or on the road.

Sam Adams Boston Lager 6 PackLess than 6 days until the race day. I am going to Sam Adams brewery after the race and savor the 26.2 brew. Until then or till I get to Boston, these will do. Cheers!

Feb 12

Withings Body Scale

Withings Body ScaleA weight scale that costs over $150 might be classified as a unnecessary purchase and a waste of money by many. You can buy a pair of top-of-the-line running shoes and running shorts with that much money. The scale also monitors fat mass, lean mass, and BMI, in addition to body weight. And it comes in very sleek glass top (black as seen on the left or white). Big deal. Still, one can buy a decent digital scale that does all that in less than $50. But, what if this scale can be connected, via WiFi, to a web site that tracks all the data and displays the data in an efficient manner? And you don’t need to do anything but just step on the scale to get that information? Aha! One must want such a gadget! This Withings Body Scale makes the weight monitoring so easy that running performance management gets more efficient. Setting up of the scale is very easy and took me just a few minutes. Apart from some personalization, there is not much more to do but step on it and get your body weight, fat mass and lean mass measured. By the time you step off of the scale and get to your computer, voilà, the data is transmitted and displayed on the Withings web site. I also connected my RunKeeper profile to my Withings profile, so that RunKeeper can calculate more accurate calories burned for any given run, because it knows my fat mass and lean mass. Of course, you can share this information with your friends and blast it onto Facebook and Twitter, but that’s just too much information if you ask me.

Having read Racing Weight, I agreed with the author about the importance of weight (fat and lean mass included) monitoring and of knowing the optimal racing weight. So, I decided to invest in this gadget. If my running performance improves by monitoring my weight better over time, I will call it a great investment. Monitoring weight may get me to watch my diet and consume less beer, ice cream and potato chips. Who knows?

Jul 23

Search For Next GPS Watch

As an avid runner, having metrics available while I train is very important. I am currently doing research on GPS watches that make various metrics readily available for monitoring during my run and for analyzing after my run. The challenge is there are quite a few watches out in the market, which makes it hard to come to a decision. If those watches are cheaper, the search won’t be as bad. However, they cost over $200, up to almost $400; therefore, I want to know all the pros and cons before the purchase and become a happy user of the watch I am going to treasure for years to come.

When I first started to train, I had a Timex T5G391 that did a great job taking lap and split times. Then came RunKeeper iPhone app, which introduced me to GPS tracking of distance and pace. Thanks to the app, I have been logging my training very closely and contributed to success of marathon training. One can do without GPS, but it makes it much easier to keep track of your training with GPS. The only complaint with the RunKeeper is I have to carry the iPhone with me while I run (I could log distance and time manually after a run, but that kind of defeats the purpose of having a GPS device). If it is a few miles, that might not be as bad, but I rather run without it if I can, especially a long run or when it is raining. This drove me to investigate into GPS watches, and after reading some reviews, I bought Timex Ironman Global Trainer GPS. Boy, that was a mistake!

Since my purchase, I have been having a problem with its GPS unit. I just do not get the satellite signal locked on when I need it. The reviews I read before my purchase had indicated the watch had the satellite signal acquisition issue. One reviewer in the UK even advised his readers not to buy the product, because the GPS is so crappy. I should have listened to him. Anyway, I am now doing my research for the next GPS watch and below is what I have found so far…

Garmin Forerunner 610

This is the most recent Garmin model that uses touch screen technology. It has so many advanced functionalities that I would never use. And touch screen? Call me old-fashioned, but I am totally happy with using buttons to navigate functionalities. The suggested retail price is whopping $349.99 without Heart Rate Monitor (HRM) and $399.99 with HRM. There are some users who are not happy with battery charging (reverse charging that leads to total depletion of battery), inaccurate GPS measurement (less accuracy early in a run), and faulty strap.

Garmin Forerunner 410
This model has touch bezel that lets you navigate its functionalities, though many people seem not impressed with the bezel control. Again, I am happy with button control if that works. On Amazon, as of today, this watch goes for $253 without HRM and $303 with HRM. The price is much better than 610, but there are some users not happy with its batter life (only lasts 3 to 4 hours??). That would be a major problem with me and would not consider purchasing if that is a real problem. Basically, 610 is much better watch and renders 410 outdated with problems.

Garmin Forerunner 210
This model does not have touch screen or touch bezel to navigate watch functionalities. It has HRM, real-time pace information, and interval support that I need. Not many more functionalities that are offered in 610 or 410. It is $199.99 on Amazon without HRM and $249.99 with HRM, as of writing time. Definitely in my price range. However, I’ve seen reviews that indicate issues with HRM (inaccurate reading) and battery recharging (not charging at all to the point of depletion).

Garmin is the industry leader in GPS watches, as far as I can see it. But it seems their watches have much room for improvement (both functionalities, manufacturing ,and price). I will continue with my research around these three models but may look into a different model or brand. When it costs as much as they do, I don’t want to make the same mistake I made with Timex.

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 1,843 other followers

%d bloggers like this: